Spring Blooms Begin In The Fall

by Dawn Oldfield, CCMGA Master Gardener

“A house with daffodils is a house lit up, whether or no the sun be shining outside.”

-A.A. Milne

Spring might feel far off, but now is the time to plan ahead! Planting bulbs in October ensures a beautiful bloom, just like those at the Dallas Arboretum in the coming months. While the average home landscape doesn’t contain over 400,000 beauties like the Arboretum gardens, gardeners who plant bulbs in late fall or early winter will be rewarded with some of spring’s earliest bloomers and enjoy bursts of color for many years. There is a feeling of heart-felt hope and joy when the first bulbs gently push through the cold winter soil, signaling that spring and warmer weather is on its way.

Now is the time to find the best spots in your garden for bulbs, as they need to be planted in the fall to ensure spring blooms. A quick look around your yard will identify areas ideal for naturalizing bulbs.

Choose an area that can tolerate going left un-mowed until early summer
An area beneath a deciduous trees
A favorite perennial garden where fading foliage won’t be very noticeable
As a rule, bulbs do best planted in areas with full sun or filtered light
Good drainage is important for successful bulb growing
Keep in mind, areas that may be shady in the summer and fall, may be sunny in the early days of spring before trees leaf out
Plant in a location that receives 6-8 hours of winter/spring sun for best blooming results

Architectural Design

For visual impact, plant groups of bulbs that bloom together in large masses or drifts.
Consider companion plants to enhance bulbs while in bloom and others that will fill in blank spaces while bulbs are fading and dormant. Annuals include alyssum, pansies, petunias, viola, snap dragon, and ornamental cabbage and kale. Perennials such as columbine, bearded iris, ferns, liriope, Lenten rose, verbena, phlox and candy tuft would be lovely choices that come back year after year with the bulbs.
Consider shrubs and vines as companions as well

What doesn’t work and why

When most people think of bulbs, tulips are usually the flower that comes to mind. Unfortunately, tulips, like most Dutch bulbs, don’t do well in Texas, as they require a definite cold period during the winter to flower. Gardeners in the South face a bit of a dilemma when planting tulips, daffodils and other spring flowering bulbs. Our temperatures are just too warm and bulbs popular in the gardens of the North simply won’t naturalize – or return year after year- in our climate.

Heritage bulbs

October through December is your window to plant heritage bulbs that thrive in North Texas. These bulbs are proven to endure our climate and bring beautiful spring color for years. Those varieties have been proven to do well in Southern gardens and will reward gardeners with a beautiful display that will thrive – and sometimes multiply- in our difficult soils and climate extremes. Heritage bulbs offer a varied color palette featuring flowers in cheery shades of yellow, red, blue, pink, white, and bi-color. Most of these bulbous beauties will bloom between February and May.

Some of the best spring flowering bulbs that come back year after year in North Texas include:

Daffodils/Narcissi: Precocious, Cheerfulness, Tete-a-Tete, Golden Bells, Cassata, Cragford, Quail, Tahiti, and Thalia

Hyacinthoids: Spanish Bluebells

Tulips: Most “species” types such as Tulipa clusiana, Tubergens Gem, and Lady Jane

Grape Hyacinth/Muscari: Muscari Armeniacum, Muscari Neglectum

Leucojum Aestivum (“Snowflake”)

Dutch Iris: Blue Magic

Other Great Selections: ipheion uniflorum Rolf Fielder, Leucojum Aestivum Gravetye Giant, Allium cowanii

Planting

It is best to plant spring bulbs after the soil cools.
Store them in a cool, dry, ventilated place until planting time. (Don’t store bulbs with fruit, which releases a gas that harms bulbs.)
Don’t wait! Plant spring bulbs between October and December while the soil is cooling. This planting window ensures they’ll be ready to bloom at the first sign of spring. (That said, this gardener regularly misses that December “deadline” and doesn’t get her bulbs in the ground until January, and they do just fine!)
Amend clay soils with expanded shale and compost.
Plant bulbs at a depth of 3 times the height of the bulb (pointy side up!)
Space about 2-3 times the bulb width apart.
Fill in with dirt and cover bulbs with 2-inches of mulch and when shoots emerge, feed with a slow release fertilizer.
Although bulbs are extremely drought tolerant, water thoroughly after planting. Bulbs need consistent water (once a week) during their growing season, although little or no water is required during summer dormancy.
After the bulbs have finished blooming, allow foliage to wither and die back naturally. This provides food for next years blooms.

Add a flourish of lovely crocus, daffodils, species tulip, iris or lilies to your landscape next spring. They are a welcome surprise in the early garden.

Ready to choose and plant your bulbs? Our Summer Series webinar by Gregg Grant is the perfect resource, packed with images and tips on the best varieties for Collin County — just in time for fall planting.